


Bliss and the Butterfly

by CupNoodles55



Series: As It All Comes Together [2]
Category: Free!
Genre: First Kiss, First other stuff, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Green Eggs and Ham, M/M, Nagisa is unashamed, Rei is struggling, They're cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:40:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26242081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CupNoodles55/pseuds/CupNoodles55
Summary: An unexpected moment in the pool makes for a long journey home, an insufferable amount of teasing, even more blushing, and a new implication to the term sleepover.
Relationships: Hazuki Nagisa/Ryuugazaki Rei
Series: As It All Comes Together [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1906147
Comments: 9
Kudos: 44





	1. Would You, Could You

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short little two-chapter story that is technically set after the events of Reaching, however, it can also stand by itself. If you haven't read Reaching, the only thing you really need to know going into this is that Nagisa made a declaration that he would get Rei to fall in love with him, and, at this point, Haru and Makoto have formed a romantic relationship. They won't specifically be showing up in this story, but the subject is one of conversation between the younger Iwatobi members, so now you know.
> 
> I love Rei. I love Nagisa. I love Free! None of them belong to me, but have fun reading anyway.

It had been about a month and a half since nationals. Summer break was over, and they were in the last remaining days of warm-enough temperatures to swim in the Iwatobi pool. Except that there wasn't much "practice," because there was no longer a four-man team. Makoto and Haru were still high school students, but since their time was running down, they were preparing themselves for the future — filling out applications, taking tests, looking at apartments in Tokyo online, the works. So — much to Haru's chagrin especially — their third years didn't spend much time in the pool, at least not as consistently as they were all used to.

All this to say, Rei and Nagisa were alone today.

Nagisa had insisted on it, said he was restless and hot, and swimming would help him expel his energy. Energy was something Nagisa had copious amounts of, so Rei went along with it. He didn't much look forward to commuting home with a fidgety and discontent little fireball. Nagisa could be truly ruthless when he didn't know what to do with himself. Basically, swimming was a good idea. The team season was over now, which meant there was no need for Gou or Amakata-sensei to linger around either, so the boys went for a casual dip uninterrupted.

It was a nice day, certainly quite warm for how late it was in the year, but just about the perfect weather for being in the water. Out of a force of habit, they swam laps for a little bit. Then Nagisa insisted Rei score him on a series of complicated dives he'd made up. Rei played along. They had a competition to see who could hold a handstand the longest, then raced each other across the pool and back. Once they'd tired from that, they just floated on their backs for a while. Rei closed his eyes and let the slowly sinking sun soak his face, and Nagisa hummed a tuneless melody that had no ending. It was peaceful, and not as sad or lonely as most other days when they swam without the others. This time it was just nice to be there, nice to cool off, nice to have _someone_.

And Rei was having one of those days — one of those days in which he allowed himself to just go along with whatever Nagisa wanted to do and be strangely pacified with it. Usually they bickered, not in an unpleasant way. They never really got mad at each other, Nagisa was just insistent and overzealous and Rei liked to be stubborn. So typically, there was a lot of back and forth, a lot of pleading, and coercing, and Nagisa using his best pouty face, which … the other, admittedly, did give into a lot. But today was different. Today Rei just nodded and agreed, and Nagisa seemed to be having fun with it.

It was when the sun finally began to dip behind the tree line that Rei declared it quits and pulled himself out of the pool, throwing a towel around his shoulders and lounging on the bench under the pergola to air dry as he watched Nagisa swim a little longer.

It was a calming moment, especially with the breeze weaving through his damp hair, and he found himself thinking that the other boy was exceptionally nice to look at. It was innocent, mostly, and especially at first. Rei simply found himself enraptured by the rhythmic bob of Nagisa's bright golden hair dipping in and out of the water. It was like watching the sun rise and fall on a loop at times one-hundred speed. Though small in stature, Hazuki Nagisa was truly hard to miss, because his aura was so big and his features so bright. Which was lucky, because he liked to run off in crowds when he got excited, and whenever he did, Rei was the one who had to chase him down and bring him back. He was like a toddler in that sense, and though it was exhausting trying to keep up with him, Rei found himself now thinking more of how it amused him.

"How long are you going to stay in there?" he called over, his voice skipping in an echo across the pool.

Nagisa perked up a grin, kicking his momentum backward like an otter. "You bored?"

"Not particularly."

"Super excited to get your homework done?"

A thoughtful dip made it to Rei's expression as he actually contemplated the answer to that. "No," he said eventually.

Nagisa laughed. "Whoa, Rei-chan. Are you sick?"

Rei huffed and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, okay. That's very funny. I'm not that big of a nerd, you know."

Nagisa giggled. "You seem pretty nerdy to me, Rei-chan."

Rei just barely smiled to himself. For some reason, Nagisa's choice of the affectionate –chan had more of an effect today, and in a pleasant way. He remembered being confused by it at first, why this hyperactive kid went around using such an endearing honorific for everyone he knew, as though he'd given them all pet names. But now that he understood Nagisa's personality, it made sense in it's own nonsensical way. It had grown on him.

He crossed his arms. "Who isn't nerdy these days, Nagisa-kun?"

"Everyone except you."

He scoffed. "No seriously, when are you going to get out? I'm getting hungry."

Nagisa gave an exaggerated gasp. "Rei-chan," he exclaimed, as though Rei had just spoken a curse word for the first time. "You're _hungry_?"

He scrunched up his nose. "Yes, I'm hungry."

" _You're_ hungry?"

"Yes, Nagisa-kun. I am hungry."

Nagisa flashed his teeth. "I swear I've never heard you say those words in my life."

"That's because you always say it first. I never get the chance to _be_ hungry around you."

"Ahhh, so it's my fault."

"Completely."

"I see. Well, Rei-chan, we should really do something about that," Nagisa said, though he continued to tread water out in the middle of the pool.

Rei leaned over his knees. "Alright then, let's do something about it. Get out of the pool."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Cuz I'm stuck."

"What do you mean you're stuck?"

"I mean, you have to come in and get me."

Rei laughed. "No. I'm not coming in to get you. You have two legs, two arms. You can get out of the pool yourself. I'm already dry."

"Rei-chaaaan!"

"Nagisa," was Rei's stern response.

This was more their speed of an exchange. It was very easy to fall into, and secretly, he knew they both loved being difficult.

"Mako-chan always helps Haru-chan out of the pool," Nagisa whined.

"That's because they can't breathe without each other. We're not like that. Get out of the pool."

"We can be like that if we want to."

"Why would we want to?"

"Why _don't_ you want to? Isn't it cute?"

Rei huffed through his nose and bit down a smile. "It's adorable. Just like you. Now get out of the pool, or I'm not going to feed you."

Nagisa dipped his head to fill his mouth with water and spat it out across the pool. "You're the one who said you're hungry."

Rei pursed his lips, though he really shouldn't have. He knew Nagisa would read it as exactly what it was, which just happened to be a weakening resolve. He really had too much charm for his own good, this kid, ever-so talented at motivating everyone else to do just exactly what he wanted. A master manipulator, and yet none could help but adore him.

The smaller teen smiled. "You really think I'm adorable?" he teased, voice lifting up on the end.

Rei crossed his arms. "Like a slime-covered baby, fresh out the womb."

Nagisa giggled. "Ew."

"Exactly."

The blonde huffed an exaggerated sigh. It was just for show, Rei wasn't stupid. "Fine. You don't have to come in. Just lift me out." He swam to the edge of the pool closest to the violet-eyed teen and waved a hand.

Rei shook his head, though there was an amused smirk on his face. "Why are you being so needy?"

"Haru-chan and Mako-chan got to have their fairytale ending. Just lift me out of the pool, and I'll be satisfied."

Rei cocked his head, doubtful. "You'll be satisfied. Really?"

"Yes," Nagisa insisted, shaking his empty hand. "I just want my Cinderella moment. I'll never ask you for another thing ever again."

Rei chuckled, but pushed himself up from the bench. "You're lying through your teeth — and Cinderella has nothing to do with this."

"Rei-chan," Nagisa huffed, shaking his hand impatiently.

"I'm coming."

Nagisa was struggling to keep a straight face, and Rei was not oblivious to it. Really, the little blonde should never be trusted, but the supposed "smart one" became something of a gullible puppy around the other sometimes, and he often ignored the warning signs of mischief. So, by the time he took that reaching hand, it was much too late.

Nagisa gripped him tightly and yanked him straight into the pool. Rei fell forward with a yelp and a belly-flopping splash. Warm day indeed, yet after having successfully cooled down the first time and getting back to a satisfactory _dry_ body temperature, meeting the water again embraced him with a shocking cold. The butterfly swimmer pushed off the bottom of the pool and popped his head above the surface with an enraged sputter.

"Nagisa!"

The blonde giggled, but said nothing. He waited only long enough for Rei to wipe the water from his eyes, then pushed himself close and pressed their lips together. Rei flinched and everything in him seized. He went completely still, hardly daring to breathe as Nagisa held it there for a long handful of seconds, just to keep that connection and let it sink in. His hands, during that time, drifted to Rei's bare shoulders, fingers tender.

Then he pulled back slowly with a satisfying release that Rei couldn't quite hear because his ears were ringing, now that his pulse had found a home in his temples. Nagisa's magenta eyes watched the blush spill into the tops of his cheeks and they just stared at each other for a quiet moment. A moment in which Rei blinked several times, very intentionally, because something wasn't computing.

Nagisa lifted an affectionate smile. "Sorry," he said, his voice ten times softer than usual. "I'm short. I had to reach you somehow."

Rei's lips pressed into a line and he looked away, the blush now spreading out like a fog. He lifted his hand as though to push his glasses up, but then became even more embarrassed when he remembered he wasn't wearing them. He exhaled shortly and his eyes dropped off to the side.

"You could have just asked," he mumbled.

He wasn't looking, but he could feel Nagisa's smile stretch. It was followed by a giggle. "Rei-chan …"

"Shut up," Rei grumbled, but this just made Nagisa's giggles more genuine.

The little blonde pecked him on the cheek this time. Rei didn't respond to it at first, except maybe to hold his breath. He just stared off to the side for the longest moment, thinking too hard for his own good, face completely red now, heart probably too loud to go unnoticed. Another dip appeared on his brow. He stiffened, turned, and quickly met Nagisa's lips again. The eagerness in the motion pushed the smaller boy back a bit, but Rei's hand had already found its way to his jaw, and Nagisa's fingers gripped Rei's shoulders firmly this time.

This one was a moving kiss, a bit sloppy at first, but so chilling that a shocked and amused breath escaped Nagisa's nose with a moan. He caught on quickly, they both did, and the rhythm their lips created became something quite passionate. So much so, in fact, that the blood rushed through Rei like a plummeting anchor. Their tongues touched, and a thirst he'd never noticed before deepened on the spot. Nagisa shivered, fingers curling. In one movement, Rei's free arm slipped around Nagisa's waist and Nagisa's legs locked around Rei's, both actions drawing their chests close.

The water lapped at them gently, unsettled by their movement, but cooling for their skin, which was running hot again anyway. Rei could swear he felt Nagisa's heartbeat in his own chest, though that could have just as easily been his own — or both. The tips of his fingers tangled themselves in the back of Nagisa's wild hair, pulling gently, but also urgently enough to noticeably steal Nagisa's breath. Rei wasn't far behind in the lack of air department, but this went on a while regardless, with the kind of overwhelming urgency one might get flushed with when drinking water for the first time after going days without. They didn't know how to stop at first, didn't really want to either, and Rei wasn't quite sure who pulled the plug, but it was pulled eventually, and they found themselves breathing heavily with their foreheads together, still clinging to each other like they were one another's life raft.

Rei's feet were planted on the bottom of the pool, but thank goodness for the weightlessness the water provided, because his knees were weak in the center, and he was quite content with Nagisa latched onto him as he was. His thumb absently stroked the side of his waist, his other fingers tapping gently, hesitantly. Nagisa's skin was soft.

"How long have you been planning that?" he murmured, eyes just barely open and staring down at Nagisa's lips past the water that dripped from their hair.

"Since lunch," Nagisa admitted, his voice a little breathless. He chuckled. "Though … I didn't expect it to turn out like _this_."

"What were you expecting?"

Nagisa's lips lifted at the corners, just a little strained. His priceless eyes peeked up, touching the center of Rei's chest with an emotion he didn't understand. "I was thinking maybe you'd chastise me — maybe huff a bit indignantly and turn your chin up like you do when you're in denial."

Rei pursed his lips against any form of amusement. He refused to endorse that. "Would you have preferred it that way?"

Nagisa's grin was a bit more carefree this time. He shook his head, flicking water on them both. "No, I liked this."

Rei swallowed, finding himself a bit overwhelmed and overheated by the sheer innocence in Nagisa's gaze, which he knew wasn't actually innocent at all. He sighed out a long breath. "I really am hungry," he said, mostly because no other words came to mind.

Nagisa giggled. "Okay, Rei-chan." He gave Rei another kiss, gently pulling on his lip with his own before breaking away, leaving a tingle running down Rei's spine.

Rei held in a protest when the grip of Nagisa's legs released his waist. He hadn't actually noticed until then that Nagisa had surprisingly strong thighs. The smaller teen used Rei's chest to push himself away, swimming back to the edge of the pool where he smoothly hoisted himself out of the water. Rei watched with flushed cheeks as the water dripped from the dip in his back and down his toned legs, immediately forming a puddle at his feet. He'd never really bothered to look so closely at Nagisa's body, but now that he did, he realized Nagisa had a nice figure for someone so small. His throat closed and his eyes darted away.

Nagisa shook the water from his hair and turned to Rei who was still red-faced and moving slowly. He reached down.

"Rei-chan."

Rei peeked up and immediately scoffed, but grabbed Nagisa's outstretched hand and allowed him to help him out of the pool.

They took their time drifting to the locker room, and not much was said along the way. They stopped to rinse the chlorine from their bodies, then rubbed themselves dry and found their way to their lockers, each shuffling through their things much longer than was necessary.

Nagisa was the first to slide his jammers off, and Rei very intentionally narrowed his eyes at the red-framed glasses in his hands, refusing to put them on just yet, and swallowing several times before Nagisa managed to get his pants on.

"Why so nervous?" Nagisa giggled lightheartedly, noticing the red spreading again down Rei's neck.

Rei pressed his lips. "I'm not nervous," he lied.

Nagisa's grin stretched. "You've seen me naked before, Rei-chan. We're on the same swim team."

Rei stiffened. "I know that."

"Well, calm down then, cuz I've seen you naked before too."

He threw a piercing glare to his right, which Nagisa very easily deflected with his blasé smile. Sometimes he really hated how flippantly blunt Nagisa chose to be.

"Based off of what just happened, I would say the circumstances have changed just a little bit, Nagisa-kun."

The blonde raised an innocent eyebrow. "You mean I turned you on?"

Rei hiccuped. He locked his jaw and looked away.

"Awww, Rei-chan. I feel so flattered."

"Put a shirt on, and get out."

Nagisa giggled, his movements slow as he just barely obeyed at his own pace. "We can take care of that right now, you know," he teased. "No one's here."

"Nagisa!"

"Okay," he chuckled, keeping on a devious grin. He slipped his shoes on and tossed the strap of his bag over his head. "I'll wait outside then."

Rei waited for him to walk all the way out of the room and close the door tightly behind him before he let out a heavy exhale and groaned, rubbing at his eyes with his elbows on top of the lockers. His pulse was heavy, but it wasn't in his chest.

* * *

They stopped at a ramen shop not too far from the school. Nagisa was just as talkative as ever, and Rei didn't understand it — not for a while at least — but then he realized Nagisa wasn't thrown off by what had happened in the pool, because he'd been expecting it, or something like it at least. And this made Rei wonder really just how long this had been sitting in Nagisa's mind.

He himself had thought about it only a little, or … maybe a tiny bit more than a little. He was used to Nagisa badgering him for attention, and clinging to him, and saying embarrassing things that made his heart stop. The blonde-headed ball of sunshine had up and declared his determination to make Rei fall in love with him, but really now … how seriously was he supposed to take that? Even though most of him had known Nagisa was being completely serious, and part of him had maybe wanted him to be completely serious. Alright fine, he'd thought about it more than he wanted to admit, but he still felt very off-balance right now, and really didn't know how to act in this situation. Because like … they'd literally just had a moment, and Nagisa was going about life as though nothing of significance had happened. And it was annoying, because the way that Nagisa went about life was to directly address issues other people were trying to hide. So, when Rei barely touched his food, even though he was the one who had complained about being hungry in the first place, Nagisa pointed this out very loudly.

"How ungrateful could you be?" he accused, though Rei knew not to take it seriously. Nagisa poked his head in the space between Rei's chin and Rei's ramen, peering into the bowl and making the other's heart flutter again.

"I brought you all the way here, and now you won't eat."

"Nagisa-kun …"

"Did you spontaneously get sick? Were my germs too much for you?"

Rei clenched a fist on his knee. "Nagisa …"

"Is there a yokai following you that I can't see?" he said, now ducking his head to peek around the other's back. "Cuz you're acting like that's what's happening right now."

Rei just sighed through his nose and made a show of taking a large bite of noodles.

Nagisa nodded his approval. "Now, are you going to finish it like the grown boy you are?"

Rei rolled his eyes away. "You are such a pest," he mumbled.

Nagisa smiled, propping his cheek in his hand, elbow on the counter. "And yet I still make you horny."

Rei pinched his nose. His body shuddered in a way he'd much rather it didn't in public places. "Nagisa-kun," he pleaded. "I need you not to do that right now. We're in a restaurant. There are other people here."

Nagisa looked around conspicuously, as though he hadn't noticed, and Rei shook his head to himself. There was no point. The intrusive blonde had no sense of what was socially acceptable and had probably never learned how to adjust his behavior based on the environment. Rei had never experienced that with him thus far. Except, before, he would say things that were only _mildly_ embarrassing.

"You're right," Nagisa said, smile creeping. "We should sneak away to the bathroom."

Rei sighed. He did a lot of that when Nagisa was involved. "I don't understand how you're doing that."

"Doing what?"

"Making jokes like nothing happened."

Nagisa laughed. "Of course something happened, Rei-chan. Why not make a joke about it? It's waaay more awkward when you don't say anything."

Rei pinched his lips. He allowed his shoulders to drop and decided he was expending too much energy on it. The more he resisted, the more Nagisa would tease him, so he finished his noodles and didn't respond, which encouraged Nagisa to find other things to talk about that Rei half listened to.

He continued to think about what Nagisa said though, as they made their way to the train station a while later. The logic made sense, but he was not of the personality type to uphold that style of thinking. Nagisa was better at not being awkward, and yet somehow he was also often the cause behind public embarrassment. Most people didn't understand him, because he said and did things that weren't normal and was completely carefree about it all the while. Secretly, it was something Rei often envied about him, and he would sometimes find himself quietly trying to emulate the same kind of boldness Nagisa had, if only he could. It was admirable, but also maddening. Nagisa was an unstoppable force, and here Rei was just trying not to fidget too much.

By the time they stopped on the platform, he was all kinds of wound up, and couldn't seem to let go of it. That kiss had knocked him out of sorts, and now he was irritated. It was like only being able to breathe through one nostril, or having to run three miles with a rock in your shoe, or a sudden itch appearing in the middle of your back.

Nagisa though, who was surprisingly intuitive, seemed to pick up on this and slid his fingers through Rei's as they waited for the train.

Rei was used to this by now. It had become a familiar gesture over the past several months. But this time, for whatever reason, it sent a shock up his arm and jump started his heart, which really didn't need a jump start in the first place. His yielding grip tightened around the other's hand automatically, and Nagisa passed him a tender smile.

"Once, when I was twelve, my family and I went camping at this spot in Kamikochi. We pitched our tent right next to a creek that split off from the river. Me and my sisters were taking turns jumping into the deep spot from a fallen tree trunk, and my third time doing it, I slipped and hit my head on a rock. Knocked me out cold."

There was a pause in the story and Rei looked over. Nagisa was staring out across the tracks, completely at peace it seemed, a soft smile on his lips like he'd never been talking to begin with.

"And …?" Rei said tilting his head.

Nagisa blinked his round eyes at him. He shrugged. "And I died."

Rei clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes away, ignoring Nagisa's giggles. "You're hilarious."

"Okay fine, I didn't die, but it felt like I did. My parents said I was in and out for an hour, but the only thing I remember is seeing this stream of light shining on the creek through the trees. And there were these little tiny white butterflies fluttering around in that one spot of sunlight, and they never touched down. That moment was infinite, but I was so okay with that, cuz it was beautiful."

Rei stared. And as he did, Nagisa's eyes picked him apart kindly, gently, intimately, one little strand of DNA at a time. He felt it in his veins, stirring with a tingle like his blood was being carbonated. His body leaned, moving all on its own, until he stopped his lips just an inch from Nagisa's. His breath stopped too, and he just hovered there, unable to move for a moment. He could feel Nagisa's fingers just slightly flexing with anticipation. His eyes had already closed, but Rei was frozen.

"Why'd you stop?" he asked quietly, his breath glancing off the skin of Rei's lips.

The taller boy tried to swallow, but it didn't work. His body shivered and he somehow found it in him to turn away and straighten his back. He dropped his gaze and didn't say anything.

"Is the train station too public for you?" Nagisa ventured, his tone gentle, as though he was trying to coax a frightened animal out of hiding.

Rei clenched his jaw. The hand that wasn't holding Nagisa's tightly gripped the strap of his school bag. His knee locked and unlocked anxiously.

Nagisa inhaled. "'A train. A train. A train. A train. Could you, would you, on a train?'"

Rei's lips twitched. He tapped his foot. "'Not on a train. Not in a tree. Not in a car. Sam. Let me be.'"

Nagisa snickered though his nose. "Who's Sam?"

Rei's lips turned up into a tentative smile. "You's Sam, stupid."

They both giggled, and the sound echoed out into the dusk.

"Tell me that book isn't just a little suggestive," Nagisa said, grinning.

Rei gave a throaty chuckle. "Don't impose your hormonal thoughts onto a children's story."

"Nah, I think they were already there."

The train arrived at this point, and as the breeze rushed by and ruffled their hair, Rei found himself admiring the structure of Nagisa's face. Round, young, with pinch-able cheeks, and eyes that no one should have the right to wield.

They were dangerous eyes, because if you looked into them too deeply, you'd find yourself sinking into submission without ever agreeing to. But the thing about that was, once you were there, it didn't matter, because the place Nagisa's eyes brought you to was one you'd never in your right mind want to leave to begin with. He was just simply bliss, walking around on this earth in the compact, seventeen-year-old body of a golden-haired boy. And who didn't want to know bliss?

The brakes squealed to a stop. The train dinged. The doors opened. Rei's grip tightened on Nagisa's hand, and they stepped on together. They picked their seats. Nagisa made himself comfortable, legs crisscrossed, shoulder leaning into Rei's. He hugged his bag in his lap.

"Hey, Rei-chan. Do you think Haru-chan and Mako-chan have had sex yet?"

Ruined. Just that quickly. Absolutely ruined. He was a whole adventure and a half, and that was just when it came to listening to him talk.

Rei tried not to groan as he pushed his glasses up, mostly to hide the red on his cheeks.

"Why would I need to concern myself with that, Nagisa-kun? It is absolutely none of my business. Nor is it any of yours."

"But you're curious though, right? You can't tell me you're not curious."

Rei pinched his lips together, this time wiping at his cheeks, as though this would help. Dammit. Damn this sickeningly honest child.

"A little," he admitted bitterly, because it was true. But that didn't mean he'd ever wanted to voice that curiosity out loud. "But that hardly matters."

"It matters enough," Nagisa said, smiling unbothered. "I'm curious too."

"Obviously."

"So do you think they have?"

Rei narrowed his eyes, intentionally ignoring Nagisa's questioning gaze. He turned his face away and didn't comment. Nagisa was hardly deterred.

"I think they have," he stated, rocking back. "There's really no way that they wouldn't have at this point. They've been together for … what, like a month?"

"Six weeks," Rei mumbled, adjusting his glasses again.

Nagisa nodded. "Yeah, they've definitely done it by now. And if they haven't, they need to."

Rei's brow pulled. He couldn't help but look to his left. "Why?"

Nagisa looked at him as though he was surprised Rei didn't know. "Because they've been wanting to for years."

"How do you know?"

"Have you not been watching them? Especially in those last few months before nationals, Rei-chan. There was all kinds of sexual tension between them. I almost locked them in a closet myself."

Rei exhaled and looked away again. "That was just emotional drama."

"But why, Rei-chan? Why? Because Haru-chan was being angsty? He's always angsty. And Mako-chan is always worried about him. So what made this different, and why do you think it ended with them starting a romantic relationship?"

Rei glanced back out of the corner of his eye. Nagisa had an eyebrow raised. He nodded.

"Sexual tension," he said. "The between-the-lines B-plot to any good story."

Rei rolled his eyes. "You're unbelievable."

"Check your pants, Ryūgazaki-kun. It's happening to you too."

Rei coughed. His knee-jerk reaction was to cross his legs, but he wished he hadn't, because it only proved Nagisa's point, and as the little one giggled about it, Rei slid a hand beneath his glasses to hide his face.

Nagisa hummed, so completely unashamed. "Frustrating isn't it? And you don't even want to admit to yourself that that's the actual problem."

Rei growled through his teeth, because he hated how Nagisa's words directly effected his pulse. "Why, Nagisa," he whined. "Why do you do this? You are so relentless."

"Because I like you, Rei-chan," Nagisa said simply.

Rei's heart skipped a beat. He squeezed his eyes shut under his fingers and released a long exhale through his nose.

"I watched you at track practice … before anyone else did," Nagisa said, tone oddly tempered now. "I liked watching you pole vault. You were really graceful. I understand why it was a beautiful sport to you. Remember how fascinated you were with Haru-chan when you saw him swimming for the first time?"

Nagisa paused, waiting for Rei's attention. He took his time about it, but out of an incurable interest, he had to eventually lift his head and glance over.

Nagisa's smile was warm this time. "I felt the same way when I saw you." He tilted his head. "Except, I don't think it was just about your form or your style. I think it was about you in general."

Nagisa leaned his elbow on his knee, and dropped his cheek into his hand, not once having lifted his gaze from Rei's yet. "I became a little obsessed, to be honest."

The warmth in Rei's skin intensified. His eyes accidentally fell to Nagisa's lips, and he quickly shifted them away, blinking more than he needed to. He sniffed.

"Well, yeah," he said, forcing his voice to stay level. "You wouldn't leave me alone."

"No," Nagisa sighed. "It was more than that. I've never been drawn to another person like that before … I still am."

Rei's breathing had gone thin. His gaze went out of focus on the floor of the train and he hid his mouth behind his fist. He had no words, and he wasn't sure he really wanted Nagisa to know how effective his tenderness was. Something hot started to fill his chest, and yet he shivered.

Nagisa pulled his knees up to his chest and laid his head on Rei's shoulder. Rei closed his eyes with a heavy sigh. They were mostly quiet for the rest of the ride.

* * *

More often than not, Nagisa would drift off during the train ride and Rei would either have to shake him awake or carry him home. This wasn't the case today. Little bliss was on a mission, and apparently he hadn't accomplished it yet. It made Rei wary, but the longer it took to get home, the more he found himself giving in to Nagisa's sporadic affections. Which was unfair really, because he'd already been at a disadvantage. There wasn't as much fight in him today as there normally was, so the blonde's advances were hitting him deeper than they would had he started on defense in the beginning. Nagisa had caught him on an off day, and he knew it.

The sun had completely gone by the time they stepped off of the train and started walking in the general direction of their homes. The cicadas were still about, chirping loudly in the background as though they had no idea summer was nearly over. It was still warm out, but not uncomfortably so, now that the sun was gone. The boys' fingers were intertwined again. And by this point, Nagisa had taken to entertaining himself by rhythmically swinging their arms between them.

"'Say!'" he exclaimed, rotating his shoulders. "'In the dark? Here in the dark! Would you, could you, in the dark?'"

Rei smirked, but didn't lift his eyes. "'I would not, could not, in the dark.'"

"Damn." Nagisa lifted a playful eyebrow. "Where would you if you could?"

Rei shook his head. "No, sir."

"Why not, sir?"

"You know, sir."

"I do not, sir."

"I would not, could not, anywhere I would not, and it's no business of yours, sir."

Nagisa beamed. "You're good at this. But I beg to differ. It's completely my business. I'm involved."

"Doesn't mean I need to tell you anything."

Nagisa huffed, watched his own feet take a few long strides, then persisted. "'Would you, could you in the rain?'"

"If it starts raining, I'm going to punch you."

"That's not how it goes," the little blonde giggled, then he sighed. "I bet you have a good arm, though … I bet you have a great arm. I bet your arm never gets tired. I bet your arm could beat for a while."

He clenched his free hand and waved it in a suggestive motion that made Rei's face flare up. He swatted Nagisa's arm down, which of course immediately unlocked his laughter.

"Stop it," Rei hissed. "I can't believe you're like this in real life."

"I can't believe you're this shy."

"You're bothering me."

"I bet I am. Tell me how good it is."

Rei popped him in the shoulder this time and tried to pull his hand away, but Nagisa whined and tightened his grip, immediately anchoring his weight in his heels to pull him back.

"Nooo! I was kidding! I'm kidding. Rei-chan, I'm kidding."

"Give me a percentage," Rei said, pushing his glasses up, head spinning from this three-hour roller coaster they seemed to be stuck on. "How often are the things that come out of your mouth actually a joke?"

"Seventy-three percent. That's my final answer."

Rei rolled his eyes.

"But you know, Rei-chan, the key to any good joke is a dash of realism."

"You don't say."

"Coffee!"

Rei glanced up, following Nagisa's gaze to the new coffee shop that had opened up a month ago, just about a mile from the fork in the road where they normally parted ways. The little blonde had been making this same sudden exclamation every day, begging for a detour, ever since it appeared. And Rei always refused because he knew coffee was the very last thing Nagisa needed.

Today though, he was already trapped in a losing battle, and so he found his footsteps slowing with hesitation this time. He glanced down at Nagisa's wide, hungry eyes which were still staring out at the shop. Something turned soft in him. He felt it, like kinetic sand that refused to hold its shape once you touched it. He sighed and redirected his footsteps, forcing Nagisa to change directions.

The smaller teen gasped and a wide smile split his face. Rei did his best not to be effected by it, but then Nagisa cranked out an excited fist pump and ran for the door, dragging his helpless companion behind him.

"Konbanwa!" Nagisa shouted, the moment he threw open the door.

Several eyes snapped up to them, startled, because no one should have so much energy at this time in the evening. But they all saw Nagisa's beaming smile and folded. Several scattered greetings were echoed back to them, and Nagisa marched up to the small line behind the front counter.

"Why not try taking it down a notch, Nagisa-kun," Rei muttered. "It's getting late. Time to settle down. We really shouldn't even be getting coffee right now."

"It's Friday," was Nagisa's retort.

Rei sighed and decided to drop it. Nagisa was too excited anyway. He was already bouncing his knee impatiently, though there was a placid smile on his lips as he hummed to himself for a moment, fingers adjusting between Rei's. The taller boy's eyes searched the menu board, pacifying himself with something to focus on that wasn't the other's nerve-racking company. Except that Nagisa leaned in closer to him.

"Would you, could you in a shop?"

Rei wanted to be annoyed, he really did, but it seemed he'd lost his steam for that, so biting back his smile was much harder to do this time.

"I would not, could not, in a shop. Not in the rain. Not when it stops. I would not with him. I could not with her. I refuse to amuse you with this, sir. The answer might come, when this journey expires. For now, you may order the treat you desire."

He released Nagisa's hand and ushered him forward where the cashier was now looking to them expectantly. Nagisa though, with as much enthusiasm as he'd run into the shop with, was busy staring at Rei with a grin that was thoroughly impressed. Rei just smirked, satisfied with his own wit, and waited patiently for Nagisa to get over it. He did, eventually, but not without muttering over his shoulder first.

"Write that down for me, please. We're gonna make this a thing."

Rei lifted his chin. "I refuse."

Nagisa giggled, then finally turned his attention forward and ordered the sweetest thing on the menu. Rei asked for a small black coffee over his head, then told the cashier to throw in one of Nagisa's favorite desserts and handed over the money they owed.

He intentionally let his eyes wander around for a bit as they waited for their order, because he could feel Nagisa's eyes calling him, and he knew the moment he looked, any last bit of fight in him would lose its vigor. It couldn't be helped forever though, and when he finally conceded, his heart dissolved on the spot, melting down into a syrupy puddle at the bottom of his stomach.

Nagisa's gaze was a kind of clear that felt more tangible than usual, because it didn't try to cover up anything. His joy, while natural, sometimes had to be carried with force, and Rei suspected that Nagisa, at some point in his life, had promised himself that he would smile through any and everything, no matter what it cost him. So there was often a thin topcoat to those smiles, like insurance, just in case the given moment required for that joy behind them to be inauthentic. But that wasn't the case now. There was no topcoat, and the bliss was pure, raw, presented in an unexpectedly tender way, but it was exactly the subtlety of it that gave it so much power.

And Rei was in love.

* * *

"I don't think you can really argue that. He's a bottom for sure."

"I still really feel like it's none of your business."

"We should call them and ask."

"That's the very last thing we're going to do. In fact, that's one thing we're _never_ going to do. Let them have their thing in peace, okay. They don't need you nosing into every little detail of their relationship. And you know how Makoto-senpai would react to that."

"Mmmm …"

Nagisa hummed through his nose as he took a long sip of his iced coffee. Clearly he was going to ignore Rei's advices. He wouldn't be surprised if the intrusive question was the first thing that came out of Nagisa's mouth when they saw the other two at lunch come Monday.

Nagisa sighed with satisfaction, parting his lips from the straw. "Do you believe in aphrodisiacs?"

"What do you mean, do I believe in them? That's a chemical thing; it's science."

"Chocolate's on that list right?" Nagisa said, lifting his cup to peer at the light brown liquid inside.

"Yes."

"What about coffee?"

Rei glanced at him, then furrowed his brow and looked at his own cup, which was already empty.

"Here, take a sip."

Nagisa raised his drink in front of Rei's face and he found himself complying before really thinking about it. It was intensely sweet. He grimaced.

"What is that?" he asked, brushing his tongue along the roof of his mouth to try and rub it away.

"An iced mocha with extra chocolate."

Rei brushed his eyes to the side. Nagisa grinned and took another long, intentional sip. The larger boy's violet eyes rolled away. And the motion was overly exaggerated, because Nagisa didn't need to know that the suggestive way he had just licked his straw actually gave Rei chills.

"You're going to find out you have diabetes one day."

Nagisa shrugged. "Better enjoy it while I can then."

He slurped up the last of his drink, and Rei cringed at the noise.

"Must you? Every time?"

"I've got to get all of it."

Rei reached over and pushed the cup down with his finger tip. The straw popped out, leaving Nagisa sucking on air.

"That sound means you got it all, okay? Don't be a pest on purpose."

"But you love it though."

"I …" Rei's throat clenched around the denial on it's own and he found himself stuttering stupidly. "Don't … y-you … You are such a narcissist."

"Aww," Nagisa cooed, eyes glittering. "Thank you, Rei-chan."

Rei's cheeks were burning yet again. "That wasn't a compliment," he mumbled, eyes glancing up to their fork in the road.

Something in him pulled uncomfortably and his feet stopped. Nagisa stopped with him, as their hands were still linked. Those magenta eyes looked up curiously, waiting and watching in silence for Rei to either speak or continue forward, but for the longest time, he did neither, because he didn't know how to proceed.

This was the point at which they were supposed to say their goodbyes for the night, release each other's grips, walk away. Rei was supposed to go home, get his homework done early, and turn in so that he could get back up right at the crack of dawn and probably study some more, read a book, find a new theory to memorize. Nagisa was supposed to go to his home, probably dig through the refrigerator — despite the ramen, the coffee, and the dessert — and then maybe stay up reading a manga, fall asleep on top of it, and stay there until noon.

They were supposed to. That's what happened every Friday. That's basically what happened most days they walked home together. Except that … he didn't really want to do that this time.

A breath fell out of his nose and his eyes dropped to the ground as a million and one thoughts whispered through his mind, doubts, reservations, calculations, scenarios, and the not-at-all unpleasant memory of their time in the pool hours ago. His grip tightened on his empty coffee cup. He turned on his heel to buy himself some time and stalked over to a trash can sitting under the streetlight on the corner.

Nagisa still watched him, following without question, and happily copied Rei's actions as he threw his empty cup away. The gentle summer breeze wound between them, easing the silence with its nocturnal sounds. Nagisa pulled in a large breath and sighed with content.

"I enjoyed my coffee, Rei-chan," he prodded, flashing a toothy smile.

"Yeah," Rei mumbled distantly, his gaze still lost in thought.

"And the dessert."

"Yeah."

Rei heard an amused huff leave Nagisa's lungs. Then his arm was being pulled, and Nagisa popped up on his toes to place a warm kiss on his cheek. Rei blinked, looking down at that sunshiny smile now. His pulse fluttered, like the wings of the tiniest butterfly.

Nagisa took a step back, hesitating only because he knew Rei was and he still wanted to see what he would do. "Goodnight?" he said, head tilting.

Rei just stared at him. But when Nagisa tested his silence by taking another step back, his grip tightened on the smaller one's hand. Nagisa bit at his lip, trying to contain his smile. He waited. And somehow, someway, Rei found the means to dig up some courage, some boldness. He gave a resolute huff and turned, walking in the direction of his house and pulling Nagisa along behind him.

The blonde skipped forward with excitement, doing nothing to hold back his smile now. He fell back in step with Rei and reinforced the lace of their fingers, positively giddy with giggles. Given as much time as it had taken to get this far since the end of the school day, the remainder of the walk up to the Ryūgazaki house went by rather quickly. 


	2. I Think I Would

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While aware that Rei lives in an apartment, for the purposes of this story, we'll call it a house.

"I'm home," Rei called once he opened the front door.

Nagisa practically jumped out of his shoes. Rei tightened his grip to keep him settled.

His mother walked out from the sitting room, embroidery hoop in her hands where she was in the midst of a project. She immediately smiled when she saw Nagisa, who also beamed, bowed much too enthusiastically, and waved.

"Please excuse the intrusion," Nagisa chuckled, paused where he was as Rei slipped his shoes off.

"Not at all, Nagisa-kun," Mrs. Ryūgazaki said sweetly. "It's always lovely to have you over."

"It's always lovely to be over." Nagisa sighed dreamily. "Your son is the best."

Rei pinched his palm to get him to shut up and released his hand to walk over and allow his mother to kiss him on the cheek with a giggle.

"Yes, I'm aware," she said proudly, poking his chin. "I'm assuming it's a sleepover night?" she said, raising an eyebrow at her son.

"Yes," Rei responded briefly, keeping his voice straight. "We'll just be up in the room."

She patted his shoulder. "Okay, sweetheart. I just washed the extra futon. It's in the closet."

"Do you still have some of those orange-cranberry cookies?"

Rei reached back and snatched Nagisa's wrist, dragging him away before his mother could answer the question. Mrs. Ryūgazaki, who was used to Nagisa's bottomless stomach, chuckled.

"I'll bring some up," she called after them.

"No need," Rei said, hauling Nagisa up the stairs. "We stopped for dessert literally twenty minutes ago. He doesn't need anymore sweets."

"Rei-chaaan."

Rei dipped around his back and pushed him from behind to make him move faster.

"But I read cranberries are an aphrodisiac too."

"Shut up. Shut up, right now," he hissed through his teeth, grateful they'd put enough distance between them and his mother by now for her not to have heard.

Nagisa was apparently loving being pulled around, because he was sure dragging his feet. He didn't move once Rei successfully got him up the stairs, just waited for him to grab his wrist again and tote him down the hall where they stopped along the way to his room to grab the extra futon.

"Why are you actually getting this out?" Nagisa asked, watching Rei struggle with it. "We're not gonna need it."

Rei huffed, face practically stuffed into the fluffy mattress, glasses askew. "I need you to cooperate, okay," he said, shoving a pillow and blanket into Nagisa's chest. "We are in my house, where my parents live and go through this closet all the time. I will not give them a reason to start asking questions."

With great difficulty, he slid the closet door closed, blindly searched for Nagisa's wrist again, and towed him the rest of the way down the hall. He pushed the door open to his room with his foot and dropped the mattress on the floor, making sure Nagisa was all the way inside before he turned back, closed the door, and locked it quietly.

Then he adjusted his glasses, propped his hands on his hips and blew his bangs from his face. He didn't allow himself time to pause for too long though, because he knew the moment he started to think about it, he'd get nervous. Nagisa was in his room now and that was enough. So he pulled his school bag off of his shoulders and dropped it in his desk chair, then loosened his tie and dug through the drawers in his closet for night clothes.

Nagisa, during this time, had dropped on top of the fluffy pile they'd created on the floor, despite having argued against needing it. He now bunched up the pillow in his arms and rubbed his face into it with a happy smile.

"Your mom must use a special sauce when she does the laundry," he hummed.

"Here," Rei said, tossing a t-shirt and a pair of drawstring shorts at Nagisa's face. "They're going to be too big, but you'll be fine."

Nagisa rolled onto his back and lifted the shirt above his head. "Yep. Won't need this either."

"Shut up. Just put it on. You talk too much."

Nagisa giggled, but obeyed.

They both stripped themselves of their uniforms, Rei again keeping his eyes averted, back turned entirely, until he was sure they were both decent. However, when he turned around again to put his uniform away, Nagisa's stomach was out, the hem of Rei's oversized shirt tucked under his chin as he sat with his legs crossed, peeking down into the space between his body and the shorts as he pulled the band away from his waist.

"Stop that," Rei chided, blood already rushing.

"They're too big."

"I know that. They have a string, tie them tighter."

"I can't."

"Nagisa-kun …"

"No, I can't. There's a knot. Look."

He jumped up to his feet, pulling on the string now instead, which was indeed knotted very tightly already. Rei's eyes drifted to the exposed waistband of Nagisa's briefs snuggly hugging the tender skin of his waist. He blinked and pushed his glasses up.

"So undo the knot," he said, turning to actually put his uniform away for real.

"Rei-chaaaan."

"Oh my god, Nagisa, just- … give me two seconds."

Nagisa waited patiently as Rei put his uniform in the hamper, then folded Nagisa's discarded clothes and stuffed them in his school bag. He then took the time to arrange the extra bedding on the floor in a convincing manner, and _then_ he kneeled in front of Nagisa and worked on the knot in his shorts with shaking hands.

He could feel Nagisa smirking over his head.

"Don't you say a word," Rei said sternly. The blush had already reached his ears. He was doing his best not to think about it, and trying even harder to keep his eyes on the string and the string only.

A finger lightly poked the top of his head.

"Don't touch me right now."

Nagisa didn't listen. Instead, he gently brushed a hand through Rei's hair. Rei shuddered, as internally as he could make it.

"Nagisa."

"But your hair's so soft." He continued the motion, moving his fingers in a slow rhythm, unknowingly sending tingles down the back of Rei's neck.

"You're impossible," he said under his breath, yanking the knot free and then immediately pulling the string tight around Nagisa's waist and retying it at the front.

Nagisa chuckled. "Why are you so nervous?"

"I'm not nervous," the other lied, sitting back on his heels now that he'd completed such a humiliating task. Honestly. Sometimes Nagisa was worse than a five-year-old.

The little blonde lowered himself to the floor in front of Rei, his smile mild and complex, his eyes searching. He reached up and pinched the frame of Rei's glasses, slowly sliding them from his face. The blush spread again, deepening with heat.

"How long have you been wearing glasses?"

Rei swallowed. "Since I was four."

Nagisa examined the glasses with interest and then slid them onto his own face, looking around the room like he was seeing everything in 3D for the first time. Rei's breathing thinned out again as he watched him, admittedly finding himself quite drawn to bespectacled Nagisa. The red frames and magenta eyes were an interesting combination, but the fact that the glasses were his specifically seemed to make it oddly significant. Nagisa had done this before, several times, but Rei was typically too busy with trying to snatch the glasses back to examine what Nagisa actually looked like wearing them.

"You're not all that blind," the blonde said, looking back at him with a smile.

Rei's lips trembled. "You're going to hurt your eyes."

Nagisa huffed with an amused breath and took them off, his gaze shifting slightly as he looked directly into each one of Rei's eyes. He pulled himself an inch or two closer, knees sliding across the floor, leaving very little space between them, which interfered with Rei's heartbeat. Nagisa's gaze dropped a bit, and Rei found his own doing the same, looking again at Nagisa's grinning lips.

"Would you, could you in your room, Rei-chan?" His voice was soft, his tone clear, his resonance all encompassing.

Rei's spine shivered. He bit at his bottom lip. "I might just … say yes in my room …" Nagisa's round eyes were pools of wonder, when he glanced back up, pulling him down into that place of no return. "But …" His breath was barely there. "Only if you kiss me soon."

Nagisa's smile lifted. He placed Rei's glasses on the edge of his bed and slid his fingers to the back of Rei's neck.

"We're gonna start our own series," he chuckled, leaning in.

Rei met him halfway.

And just like the moment in the pool, the gush of passion was instant. Despite the fact that they'd only shared their first kiss a few hours ago, the level of expertise seemed to have jumped up drastically since then, purely due to a flip in confidence. Nagisa's lips were familiar now, his tongue sweet, the rhythmic pull of his kiss generous. Rei's heart was dancing, to a beat he wouldn't try to keep up with, but it pumped adrenaline through his veins, sent a flurry of endorphins through his nervous system. He released a trembling sigh and reached for Nagisa's waist, pulling him up effortlessly into his lap.

Nagisa's arms wrapped around his neck, fingers pulling at his hair, still shooting vibrant tingles down his spine. It tasted good, in ways he couldn't explain; he just felt it, he just lapped it up with his tongue, he just swallowed and quietly asked for more.

Nagisa's teeth gently bit at his bottom lip and he found himself moaning. The heat he'd noticed in his chest before returned and spread its way throughout the rest of his body. It wasn't like the blushing, this was different, this was more internal than hot blood, was more intangible but still so very felt. It tightened his stomach and made him so very alert to Nagisa's every move. The adorable, golden, innocent blonde was secretly greedy. It wasn't much of a surprise, except that now, all charming, manipulative tactics had been tossed to the side, and in this moment he didn't plead, he demanded. All with his body, all with the way he hungrily moved his lips and pulled Rei's hair and gripped his waist with his thighs.

He shifted, and Rei had to break the kiss to exhale a quivering whimper. Nagisa was now very intentionally positioned on top of his groin, every little movement he made shooting the same shocking tingle now back up his spine. It wasn't much at first, just something like a teasing threat that burned Rei's skin. And then Nagisa started to grind his hips.

It felt like the dizzying hit of a drug, rippling through his body with a pleasurable effect that he'd never felt before. Far different from late nights alone in his room. He immediately became addicted, and used his hands to encourage the movement, firmly holding Nagisa's waist with one hand and gripping his thigh with the other. He could feel Nagisa's erection forming against his abdomen, and somehow this aroused him even more.

A distant voice scraped at the ringing in his ears, trying to move it out of the way to say something to him, but he was hardly interested. Nagisa's body was more important right now.

But then there was a knock.

"Rei?"

He turned his lips away from Nagisa's, gasping for air, and yet, trying not to breathe too loudly. "Yeah?"

Nagisa's lips went straight to his neck, tongue darting out to lick his skin, teeth nipping just under his jawline. He didn't stop moving either. Rei's eyes closed and a whispered whine escaped his lips. He struggled to stay present. His mother was literally on the other side of the door.

"Did you find everything okay?"

"Yeah," he said, as straight as possible. "We got it."

"If you boys get cold in the middle of the night. I just took out some fresh blankets downstairs in the laundry room."

Nagisa's teeth bit down pleasantly on the dip in his neck. He winced, fingers digging into his flesh.

"Okay," he breathed, voice drowning in need but much too soft for his mother to hear. He tried again. "Okay. Thank you."

"Do you boys need anything else? Why is the door locked?"

Rei cursed under his breath.

"Tell her we don't have any condoms," Nagisa mumbled into his skin.

Rei cursed again, and forced himself to push Nagisa onto the floor. He stumbled shakily to his feet and threw open the door just as his mother began to call his name again. She jumped, alarmed by his abruptness, and blinked at his flushed skin. He did his best not to pant, but he knew he was failing miserably. Her brow furrowed.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes," he breathed.

"Why was the door locked?"

"We were changing. I didn't get to unlock it yet."

"Oh, well, do you boys need anything else? I brought these up," she said, presenting the plate of cookies Nagisa had requested.

"I told you we don't need those," Rei said much too shortly.

His mother pursed her lips and shoved the plate into his gut. "Honey, Nagisa is our guest. Let him eat whatever he wants."

"Thank you, Ryūgazaki-san!"

Rei looked back over his shoulder the same moment that his mom leaned past him to peek into the room. Nagisa was sitting on the extra futon, legs crossed with his hands stuffed into his lap innocently. His cheeks were pink, but other than that there was nothing askew about him, thanks to his signature smile.

"You're welcome, honey."

Rei turned his eyes to the wall.

"You boys try not to stay up too late, okay? You don't want to waste a Saturday."

"Okay, Mom," Rei said, straining to keep the impatience from his voice. His knee was locking and unlocking again, fingers tapping on the door.

"Your father should be home soon," she said, turning her eyes directly to him.

He pressed his lips together and nodded.

"I'll have him check in on you before he goes to bed."

"You don't have to do that."

"Honey, please, you know it's his thing."

Rei kept his groan of frustration to himself. "Alright, fine."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Just a bit jittery," Nagisa said brightly from the background. "He had a coffee on the way home. I think it's starting to kick in."

Mrs. Ryūgazaki furrowed her eyebrows at her son. "You drink coffee?"

"It was …Yes. It was a social thing. Mom … Are you going to bed now?"

She rolled her eyes with an exasperated sigh. "Yes, honey, goodness. Maybe you should stay away from caffeine this late at night." She kissed him on the cheek. "I love you."

"Love you too," he mumbled.

"Goodnight. Goodnight, Nagisa-kun."

"Goodnight!"

"I'll see you boys in the morning."

"Okay," Rei called to her back, waiting as patiently as his strained muscles would allow, before he closed the door and leaned his back against it with a sigh, clutching the plate of cookies tightly.

Nagisa took a breath, and Rei shot a hand up to cut him off, leaning with his ear, listening closely for the sound of his parents' bedroom door closing way on the other side of the house. It was faint, but it happened. He dropped his hand and looked across the room. Nagisa's smile was relentless.

"She's got incredible timing. I'm surprised she didn't notice your boner."

"Stop," Rei said, finally walking back to place the cookies on the table.

Nagisa crawled over and latched onto him the moment his knees touched the floor. Rei turned his face away from the kisses and stopped Nagisa's hand from reaching down between his legs.

"No," he groaned softly.

"Why?"

"My dad's going to be home soon."

"So?"

"So, he's going to come in to check on us. Were you not listening?"

"I was staring at your ass."

Rei coughed. Nagisa chuckled, but the violet-eyed boy refused to humor him. His nose twitched instead.

"He's on his way, and he'll be here soon," he reiterated.

"And you want to _wait_?" Nagisa said incredulously.

"As opposed to having him walk in on his son doing unsightly things with another boy? Yes."

Nagisa hunched his shoulders in a pout. "How long?" he whined.

"Long enough for you to practice some patience. Eat your cookies." He picked up a cookie from the plate and stuffed it into Nagisa's mouth.

Nagisa moaned a childish whine, and Rei chuckled, shaking his head to himself. It was unavoidable. In this state, everything Nagisa did was adorable and all he wanted was to lay him down on the floor.

He just watched for a moment as Nagisa quietly stuffed his face. Apparently, sexually frustrated Nagisa wasn't quite the same ball of sunshine, and somehow this made Rei smile. There were different dimensions to Nagisa — sides he never knew about, and he was both honored and thoroughly intrigued to be introduced to them. He wanted to learn more, study him, strip him down, see what really made him blush, and just thinking about it drove his heartbeat south again.

He pulled in a long breath through his nose and rapped his knuckles anxiously on the floor.

"You're not even gonna kiss me?" Nagisa said through a mouthful.

Rei shook his head. "I can't." He lifted his eyes to Nagisa's crumb-dusted cheeks and snickered through his nose. He reached up and used his thumb to clean the little one's face. "And I most assuredly don't want to with cookies in your mouth."

Nagisa finished chewing quickly and swallowed, dropping the second half of his third cookie back onto the plate. He opened his mouth. "All gone. See?"

Rei smiled. He lifted Nagisa's chin with a knuckle, pushing his mouth closed, and kissed his forehead. "Let's put on a movie."

"A movie?" Nagisa wailed.

"Just until he gets here."

Rei was already getting to his feet, Nagisa knew he was defeated, and he seemed too exasperated to keep trying. This was truly amusing. Rei wished he had a theory book on the inner workings of Hazuki Nagisa. How had he so flawlessly held himself together all this time after their pool incident only to just now have a meltdown at having to wait another half hour? It wasn't pleasant, Rei acknowledged that, but they had something to look forward to at least.

Nevertheless, Nagisa made sure all of his impatience was vocalized as he lay out on the floor with his limbs spread, while Rei set up the TV he only used when Nagisa slept over. He took the liberty of picking the movie out and once the previews started, he stood over Nagisa's waist, grabbed his arms and hauled him up off the floor. Nagisa left his body limp, moaning and groaning, and allowing Rei no assistance. Rei didn't complain. He dropped Nagisa onto his bed, then propped him up on some pillows against the window and arranged his limbs for him. Then he cut the lights out, cracked the door open, and made himself comfortable by Nagisa's side, allowing him to nuzzle up against him and curl his arms around his bicep.

The antsy teenager seemed to calm down a bit once the movie started, and Rei was sure letting him trail kisses up and down his arm did something too. He leaned his head back, and stared blearily at the screen, paying more attention to the prickling in his skin wherever Nagisa's lips touched it. He wanted to respond, but he didn't. He didn't trust himself to. And indeed the very last thing he wanted was to have to explain to his father what was going on if he walked in and happened to catch one or both of them with their pants down. That was more uncomfortable than having to wait, so he kept that in mind.

* * *

The seconds seemed to tick on forever, but finally, at about twenty minutes into the movie, Rei could hear the car pulling up in the driveway. He exhaled a long breath and tapped Nagisa's knee to signal that the cuddling and affection needed to pause. The blonde sat up obediently, saying nothing about it, and positioned himself in a comfortable pose that said he and Rei were just friends and they'd just been innocently watching movies all night.

He was quite good at this.

Rei's father took his dear sweet time entering the house, shuffling around downstairs, and then finally ascending the steps. Rei's bedroom door opened. Both boys looked over as though they hadn't been waiting for it.

Mr. Ryūgazaki smiled. "Hey, boys."

"Hey," they chorused.

"All good up here?"

"All good," Rei said.

"I imagine your mom already asked you a million times if you needed anything."

"Yep."

"Alright, then I'll assume your set. Have a good night, okay? Don't stay up too late."

Rei lifted his chin.

"Good to see you, Nagisa-kun."

"You too, Ryūgazaki-san."

Rei's father smiled and patted the door, dipping away. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Then they both just sat there, staring at the door, holding their breath, until they heard the faint click of his parents' door once again closing on the other side of the house. Nagisa let out an exaggerated breath and flopped over on his side. Rei got up to close his own door all the way, and turned the lock again.

He crossed back to the bed and crawled over Nagisa's body, sliding in behind him so that his chest framed his back. He dropped his glasses on the nightstand and propped his forehead up in his palm, hovering over Nagisa's head from behind as they both paid half a mind to the movie for just a moment longer.

"Are you tired?" he asked, winding his arm around Nagisa's torso and brushing his chest with his thumb.

Nagisa shook his blonde head and shifted closer, lining his body flush in the curve of Rei's. The combined warmth of their body heat was already doing underhanded wonders at reviving the eagerness that had died down while they waited. Rei leaned over and kissed Nagisa's temple, then his cheek, then his jaw, all the while sliding his palm down from his chest around to his waist and back slowly. Nagisa closed his eyes, reaching up with a hand to curl his fingers around Rei's hair, encouraging the kisses to continue. So they did, and Rei found himself enjoying the little nuisances in Nagisa's response to each peck. He liked that he tensed a little bit, that his muscles flexed involuntarily, that his breathing changed and that Rei could begin to pick up on the increasing weight of Nagisa's heartbeat.

He'd never done anything like this with another person before, but like everything else, he'd done a bit of research here and there, and found it quite fascinating, all the different little things someone could do to turn another person on. Even that in itself was a captivating concept — that a human being could be "turned on" or off, like a light switch. If you studied biology, hormones, the nervous system and things of the like, it made a lot of sense … in theory. But like most phenomena, Rei was discovering that actual practice was another thing entirely, not that the science behind it was inaccurate, but that like … who cared right now?

The one thing that helped though, was the little tidbit that most people did certain things for other people that they wanted for themselves. So, while Rei may not have necessarily thought to do it himself, he found that when he lightly bit at the skin on Nagisa's neck, it pulled a small gasp of pleasure out of him. And it was a nice thing to listen to. Fascinating.

He continued to do this, reading Nagisa's body like a book written in brail, searching for sensitive spots and little triggers, touching different places with his fingers, kissing different areas of skin. There was something about pressing into his hipbone that made Nagisa's back arch, and nipping at his ear seemed to cause his pulse to skip several beats at a time. Rei was quite enjoying this, and for a long while, was in absolutely no rush.

But then Nagisa took his searching hand and held his palm out in front of his face. Curious, Rei stopped his venturing pecks in favor of watching over Nagisa's hair as he inspected Rei's fingers quietly, pinching them, testing his joints, touching his own fingers to them. Then he took Rei's thumb and brought it to his lips to place a small kiss on it. Rei cocked his head.

Nagisa took each of his fingers, one by one and kissed them on the pads, several times and in no particular order. Then, when it appeared he'd found the ones he favored, he took Rei's middle and ring fingers together, brought them to his lips as though to kiss them again, but this time slid them into his mouth. Rei stiffened, and a surprising shiver rippled through the full length of his body. It worsened when Nagisa's tongue slipped between his fingers and then, when he pulled them back out and bit the tip of his middle finger. And he did it all so methodically, as though he knew it would stir something up in Rei's core. He only did it once though. Then he curled his fingers around Rei's hand and turned his head to peek up over his shoulder into Rei's eyes, knowing he was already staring down at him.

Nothing was said, but the air grew warmer the more he allowed himself to be pulled down by Nagisa's eyes, sinking into near oblivion where he became a version of himself that was no longer concerned with being embarrassed or blushing. They'd managed, during this one night, to somehow cross every line between them that had once made holding up boundaries necessary. They weren't friends anymore. Nagisa knew how Rei felt, and Rei knew what Nagisa wanted, and that was all they needed to know now.

Nagisa very intentionally let go of Rei's hand, and he knew what to do with that. So he followed that same path he'd been tracing before, down from Nagisa's chest, over and around his waist, and this time followed the length of his thigh, down one way on the outside, and then back up on the inside where he eventually came upon the piece of Nagisa that, in this moment, was most eager for his company. He began to stroke, slowly and gently, but intentionally, and he watched Nagisa's face as he did it.

The blonde didn't flinch at first, but from the glow of the TV, Rei could see the gentle brush of color blossoming on his cheeks. His breath shortened, quietly at first, still passing through his nose. But then Rei added a little more pressure and Nagisa's lips parted, eyelids fluttering as his gaze went out of focus. His chest lifted, head tipped back ever-so slightly. Rei's heart beat harder, intoxicated by the small but so very intimate scene he was watching that had nothing whatsoever to do with the movie on screen.

He leaned in and Nagisa's lips welcomed his gratefully, tongue darting out with an abrasive excitement that was very much like Nagisa. Rei's pulse moved again, showing up in that oh-so-sensitive spot way south of his ribcage. Nagisa's arm reached back underneath Rei's, fingers latching firmly onto his hip and pulling him closer. Rei exhaled a very steady breath through his nose, though that was not at all how he felt right now.

His pelvis started to rock, following the influence of Nagisa's grip without complaint. His stomach flipped, and he could feel the tingling heat of blood flooding his erection. He kissed Nagisa a little more urgently in response, every moving part of his body growing a little less gentle and a little more needy as the heartbeats drummed by. His own breath began to shorten considerably, matching and mixing with the weight of Nagisa's.

Rei's fingers pulled the knot loose that he'd tied on Nagisa's shorts earlier and he slipped his hand beneath both waistbands, oddly thrilled with the warmth his fingers met as he took Nagisa fully into his hand. Nagisa whined into his mouth, and Rei answered with a hum of delight that turned into a groan when Nagisa started to rock his hips too, adding to the pressure rubbing up against Rei's aroused member.

The kissing had to stop soon because they started to pant, and concentrating on what was going on below their navels was much more pressing. Rei's free arm slipped over Nagisa's shoulder and circled his chest, holding him as close as possible against his body as Nagisa's head dropped back on his shoulder.

"Rei-chan …" Nagisa groaned, his voice frail but gushing over with desire.

Rei pressed his lips to the space behind his ear, his rhythm picking up, responding directly to that insinuative plea with his own lustful hunger. Nagisa's fingers gripped his shorts, pulling with an impressive strength. There was no time in this moment, no pressure, no interest in anything other than each other, and no world outside of Rei's bedroom — no world outside of the bed itself really, because even the movie, which was still playing, didn't register to either of them anymore. It was delicious, this dance, but the more of it he took in, the more starving he felt, the more desperate, the more obsessed with needing to be fed, and Nagisa's every feather-light moan communicated the same thing. It wasn't enough.

So Nagisa was the first one who moved, dipping Rei in and out of both surprise and frustration in all of one second when he ripped himself away. But in one fluid movement, he forced Rei flat on his back and dropped down on his knees on top of him, still rocking with their hips aligned like there'd been no break in motion. Rei's moaning gasp was surprisingly loud, and he could feel the blush coming back to stain his face. Nagisa huffed out an amused breath and leaned forward to kiss his lips, moving the pressure around in the most pleasant way, still without pausing. Rei groaned a curse against Nagisa's lips. He wasn't normally one for cursing, but it seemed this compromising situation was the thing that would continue to draw that out of him.

They hovered weightlessly in this moment for a little while, and truthfully Rei could have stayed there forever, just exactly like that. He very faintly wondered if Nagisa had ever done this before, because he very much seemed to know what he was doing, but he wasn't going to bother to ask. He barely bothered to dwell on it. The grind of Nagisa's body was too good. So good, he felt it in some deep cavern within his stomach that he didn't know he had, where it caused his body to tremble relentlessly and everything else to leave his mind. He couldn't hold a thought to save his life, and he had never experienced that before.

Nagisa's hands gripped the front of his shirt, and hauled him up into a sitting position. His fingers slid underneath the fabric and pulled the shirt up over Rei's head, tossing it carelessly to the floor. Normally, Rei would have an issue with that, as he liked to always put things back where they belonged the moment he had no use for it anymore, but right now, he didn't give a shit.

Nagisa crossed his arms and pulled off his own shirt, tossing it too. His blonde hair was tousled, his round eyes gleaming, pupils dark with the possessive clutches of lust. He was something of a sight in this moment, completely different from his bright, bubbly, doe-eyed self that laughed at everything. There was an aura to this Nagisa that was several years older, that was seductive, and felt a little more dangerous, and it was the most attractive Rei had ever seen him.

"When did you get so hot?" he found himself whispering, really without meaning to. It was meant to stay in his head, but it made Nagisa lose a breathless laugh, which rolled right into a sigh when Rei kissed his bare chest.

He ran his hands up from his waist and down his back, absorbing the tender texture of his skin, which was hiding astonishingly firm muscles underneath. His fingers curled around the waistband of both the shorts and Nagisa's briefs and pulled them away from his hips. Nagisa drew his knee up between them to free his right leg, and Rei finished the rest for him, also tossing the useless clothes to the side, leaving Nagisa now completely bare.

Rei's veins wracked with chills and he let his hands explore every bit of Nagisa's exposed figure, before he grabbed him around the waist and held his weight as he shifted up onto his knees and then lowered Nagisa down onto his back, their heads now at the other end of the bed. They kissed for a moment, pausing to savor the taste of each other's tongues. Rei hovered with his palms pressed into the bed, kneeling in the space between Nagisa's legs as the blonde, brushed his thumbs across either side of Rei's jaw, nipping at his bottom lip again.

"Rei-chan," he called out softly, his voice swallowed up by the continuous pulling of their lips.

Rei's response was a hum.

"Have you done this before?"

Rei shook his head, still lapping up the taste of Nagisa's tongue whenever he wasn't talking.

"Me neither," Nagisa managed to slip out. "But … I've been … wanting to with you for a while."

Rei lowered himself a little more, using his elbows now to keep himself from crushing Nagisa underneath him. "I know," he breathed into the other's mouth.

Nagisa went quiet for a bit, allowing the kissing to continue, fully and eagerly participating in it, though Rei could tell there was something on his mind, and he didn't honestly know how right now. His thighs closed in on Rei's waist, firm, but not unyielding as Rei's shorts were just barely brushing up against his naked hard-on.

Nagisa released a long and sudden breath. "I have to tell you something."

"Now?" Rei groaned, still attempting to get the most out of their kisses.

Nagisa hummed an affirmative. "I just … I wanted to say it … before anything else happens … because …"

Rei sighed, breaking the kiss as he pulled his lips away. "Nagisa," he complained, pressing their foreheads together.

Nagisa just continued talking, his words rushed and breathless. "I just wanted to say it before anything else happens, because I don't want you to think I'm saying it just because of this."

Rei's shoulders dropped with defeat as he exhaled again and lifted his face, looking down into Nagisa's eyes with his attention, even though the lower half of his body was not amused by this intermission.

"What is it?"

Nagisa's deep pink eyes were shining, taking in all of Rei's face with a look Rei didn't quite understand but was deeply effected by. The blonde lifted his head to place a gentle kiss on his lips.

"I love you."

Rei's spine trembled. His breath stopped for a moment, and he could only stare as Nagisa rested his head back and watched him for a response. He wanted to give him one quickly, but like the first time Nagisa had kissed him that day, he was struggling to find the ability in him to move. His lips twitched, fingers curled into the sheets on either side of Nagisa's shoulders. He was so deep in Nagisa's gaze at this point, it felt a little like floating off into the abyss of space, completely untethered to anything. Something warm began to flower open in his core, and it expanded out through his muscles, touching them with a tenderness that encouraged them to relax. His lungs breathed.

"Nagisa-kun," he found himself saying. "I love you too."

He watched the light swim up from somewhere deep within Nagisa's being. It filled his eyes and pulled his lips into a blinding smile.

"You do?"

Rei nodded. "Yeah."

"You're not just saying that cuz I said it?"

An amused chuckled escaped his throat and his shook his head. "No … I realized it earlier today actually."

Nagisa tilted his head. "At what point?"

"When we stopped for coffee," he said, gaze going distant as he thought back on the moment Nagisa had looked at him with absolutely no filters to his smile. "You are … the personification of perfect happiness — bliss," he said quietly, blinking to focus back on Nagisa's gaze.

There was an emotion there that Rei hadn't seen before, and it made his heart flutter. Somehow Nagisa's smile got even bigger. He wrapped his arms around Rei's neck and pet the back of his hair.

"And you're my beautiful butterfly," he said happily, eyes twinkling with adoration.

Rei's lips lifted into a perfectly content smile. He kissed Nagisa, then kissed him again, then kissed him again.

"Rei-chan?"

"Hm?"

"Why are you still in your shorts?"


End file.
